The Daily Lard 4-8-12

Douglas LeeApr 8, 2012 12:10 PM

Good Morning, Broncos fans! Dan Pompei says the Broncos' acquisition of Peyton Manning, their trade of Tim Tebow to New Jersey, the signings of Alex Smith in San Francisco and Matt Flynn with Seattle, and Shanny's trade up to the #2 pick have created a sense of desperation for the teams that failed to land a big QB fish this offseason.

And the potential outcome of this urgency is A&M passer Ryan Tannehill flying up draft boards, perhaps even into the top five or ten picks to the Browns at four, Dolphins at eight, or the Chiefs at #11. Why? Because it's all about quarterbacks in this league, as the last nine Super Bowls have been won by the Manning brothers (three combined), Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger (two each), Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees (one each).

Adam Teicher says that after having passed up on Joe Flacco, Mark Sanchez, and Josh Freeman in recent years, Tannehill could be the guy that makes KC pounce. As Teicher sees it, the Chiefs roster has few holes, with QB being perhaps the most glaring one.

Broncos

Brandon Stokley tells Lindsay Jones that the presence of Peyton Manning means the Broncos can expect fast-paced practices and zealous position meetings, while Duke coach David Cutcliffe describes the intensity of Peyton's leadership and note-taking.

In pondering the Broncos' workout of Brock Osweiler (whose perceived value is all over the map), Will Brinson suggests that while Denver doesn't want to repeat Indy's mistake of failing to acquire an heir to Peyton Manning, they shouldn't be in a rush to do so.

agreed. maybe pioli didn't see orton as being enough of an improvement over cassel to outweigh cassel's big fat expensive contract

Posted by MississippiMudWalk on 2012-04-09 13:01:09

whoa, how did Indy make a "mistake" by not finding an heir to Peyton Manning. Just one lousy season, and they had it at the perfect time to draft the best QB to come along since...Peyton Manning. Indy did fine...

Posted by MississippiMudWalk on 2012-04-09 09:31:18

I can't help myself without commenting on the KC situation. Probably everyone is asleep anyway - but what the heck.... Romeo Crennel practically gushed over how Kyle Orton had gotten him the HC job. He almost brought them - a 5-8 team when he took them over - to win the division. Just a couple of blocked FGs against the Raiders was the difference.

It must have been Scott Pioli who did not sign Orton to another contact while letting him go to Dallas as their backup via a 3 yr contract. Now they are looking at possibly drafting Tannehill with their first pick. I would have dumped Matt Cassel in a heartbeat and kept the guy that helped their team win at the end of a dismal season. Lucky for the Broncos that the Chiefs did their thing....

I will root for Kyle Orton as a Cowboy....

Posted by BlackKnigh on 2012-04-09 02:32:55

I'm trying to imagine drafting an RB anywhere. I'm not especially impressed with this RB class. I'd take Richardson at #25, but would not trade up for him. I'd take Doug Martin or David Wilson at #57, but I'd take a score of players (many of them defensive) before them, even if Wilson and Martin were available, which I doubt. I might take Polk at #87, but again, not in the place of Chapman or many others that I like better, again if he were available there. I could be tempted with Turbin at #108, but again depending upon who else might be available. The only other RB that I think could make the roster might be Ganaway, but I'd be reluctant to take him before #188. At the moment, this is a draft where I think RBs will be most valuable to the Broncos if others take them and allow someone else to fall to them.

Posted by ivanthenotsobad on 2012-04-08 20:25:01

Let's face it, we live or die with Manning this year. Hanie and Weber still offer enough QB backup for me. Let's draft someone who can help Manning go for it all. If we have to go offence, I still want a RB over a QB.

Posted by Boz on 2012-04-08 20:04:47

Happy Easter everyone. I've only now been able to check the site.

BlackKnightI pretty much agree with you.

IMO whether or not they think Hanie has an upside, I'd not be surprised if the Broncos selected a QB as early as Rd#2, if the right person fell to them. They've stated as much.Most of the comments here that object to any thought of a QB before Rd # 4 or 5, justify that objection with comments about the low quality of the roster (see Drewthorn for example).

Can you imagine the conversation between Elway and Manning prior to Manning's signing going something like this:Manning - "what about the poor shape of your roster."Elway - "Yeah! We recognize how bad it is. We'll do the best we can but it will take a couple of years for us to be as competitive as we need to be."Manning - "I can live with that."I cannot imagine anything like that.

IMO more likely it went something like this.Manning - "Give me your assessment of where you stand in terms of overall roster."Elway - "I basically like what I see. Mostly, we have quality players everywhere and can now concentrate on building depth and finding gems."Manning - "I have to agree that some of the negative feelings about your roster from the fans and media doesn't mesh with what I sense."Elway - unfortunately much of that is the result of our frankly inadequate QB play. It put a strain on our offense and defense. On offense, the OL had to both attempt to keep TT from assault for inordinate amounts of time while he was trying to find open receivers and then be ready to anticipate when and where he might try to run. They were never allowed to get into sync or flow. In addition, the WRs could never expect to see the ball as a result of anticipation of when they would be open. With you, both of those conditions will change drastically and you'll find that we already have more than adequate OL and WR corps. On defense, at first there was a developing sense of aggressive optimism as they realized that the potential was pretty high, especially with the addition of some of the young guys. However, as their time on the field began to increase drastically with the increasing number of 'three and outs', injuries mounted and the energy frankly got sapped. Just the presence of an offense that can maintain some semblance of ball control will greatly improve what we have. If we can spend an increasing amount of time in the lead, you'll begin to see a defense that will cause absolute havock, I guarantee it."Manning - "That pretty much matches my perception."Elway - "Fortunately, with a pretty good draft our current roster has possibilities. And with judicious additions through FA and with another quality draft we could easily have elite personnel on both offense and defense this next year. We'll attempt to find a back-up QB to be groomed, and we'll continue to add pieces where upgrades are indicated, but we should be in pretty good shape even beginning the season.Manning - "Sounds like a pretty fair desciption of what I see as well. Should I decide on the Broncos, I can assure you that I will do everything I can to make sure that the timing and communication between myself and the OL and WR corp will make as much use of the talent already present as is possible. I think we might do just fine together. You can handle some of the rest."Elway - "that's what I like to hear."

Which conversation do you think more likely?

Posted by ivanthenotsobad on 2012-04-08 19:50:21

Its not as if Osweiler, etal are prepared to sustain an NFL playoff push...especially with this roster.

Posted by drewthorn on 2012-04-08 16:41:43

One concern that I have is their backup situation. Maybe this is my thing - but I don't exude a lot of confidence in Caleb Hanie. I am thinking that they may draft someone with skills to be #2 for now.

Posted by BlackKnigh on 2012-04-08 16:15:08

Choosing Weeden, Osweiler or Foles will be a wasted pick. No QB until the 4th or 5th rd, please.

Happy Easter all.

Posted by Orange_and_Blue on 2012-04-08 14:40:00

Brinson is spot on, IMO. Rolling the dice on Manning is a serious timeline changer, and I don't see the logic of using a second or third round pick on a QB prospect at this point.

A guy that might make a lot of sense-- and who should be available at 4(b)-- is B.J. Coleman. He has the tools, a tempermant similar to Manning's (film junkie, football 24/7, etc, etc, etc) but needs serious refinement. But I'm not sure that 4(b) isn't still a little early. Denver simply needs too much help and depth at too many other positions.

Posted by drewthorn on 2012-04-08 13:11:00

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Mike Wallace. He was perhaps the last of the true, unbiased, network news anchormen. He will be missed.